Habsburg Monarchy: Did you mean...?

The Glorious Revolution of November 1688 saw Protestant William of Orange (l. 1650-1702) invade England and take the throne of Catholic James II of England (r. 1685-1688). There were no battles, and William was invited by Parliament to become...

On 20 April 1792, King Louis XVI of France (r. 1774-1792) stood before the Legislative Assembly and, with a faltering voice, read a declaration of war against Austria, to the ecstatic delight of the gathered deputies. This declaration sealed...

Charles II of England (r. 1660-1685) was the king of Scotland (1649-1685) before the Restoration in 1660 also made him king of England and Ireland. Charles was a charming and easygoing monarch who took a keen interest in sports, science...

In this gallery, we look at the history of the last five royal houses of Britain through their family trees. From the Wars of the Roses to the current House of Windsor, we see an evolution from absolute rule to a constitutional monarchy...

The Imperial Crown of Austria. Made in 1602, this crown has been used by the Habsburg monarchs of Austria, the Holy Roman Empire, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the kings of Hungary and Bohemia. The crown combines the traditional crown...

Honoré-Gabriel Riqueti, comte de Mirabeau (l. 1749-1791) was a French orator and nobleman who rose to prominence as a leader during the early stages of the French Revolution (1789-1799). From the disgraced and scandalized son of a distinguished...

Louis XVI (l. 1754-1793) was the last king of France (r. 1774-1792) before the monarchy was abolished during the French Revolution (1789-99). An indecisive king, his attempts to navigate France through the crises of the 1780s failed, leading...

Charles I of England (r. 1625-1649) was a Stuart king who, like his father James I of England (r. 1603-1625), viewed himself as a monarch with absolute power and a divine right to rule. His lack of compromise with Parliament led to the English...

Anne reigned as Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1702 and then, following the 1707 Act of Union, over a united kingdom as Queen of Great Britain until her death in 1714. The last of the Stuart monarchs, Anne's reign witnessed...

The impact and consequences of the English Civil Wars (1642-1651) were many and far-reaching. Charles I of England (r. 1625-1649) was executed, and the monarchy was abolished. Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) then headed the Republic as the Lord...